The Henry dress

July 8, 2015

Hi everyone! Today I am sharing a dress pattern that I was lucky to test. It is the Henry dress, a pattern by Brooklyn Pattern Company. When Erin posted a testing call I immediately signed in! You all know how much I love to test sewing patterns but actually I am responding to testing calls less and less these days. Nonetheless, I made an exception for this one. :) There has been a (huge) boom of indie PDF patterns since last year (it's all Lauren's fault :) ) and there are days where I can easily spot half a dozen testing calls for new patterns. If only the days would have 72 hours... Yes 72, because 48 wouldn't still be enough... :) Anyway, there was a time (that started on February 2014) when I would apply to any and every testing call and I would be genuinely thrilled to work in all of them. I do love to test patterns! But nowadays other projects (sewing and blogging related) have knocked on my door and I need time for them. The thing is, there is only a set amount of daily time that I allow myself to sew and blog because my three little monkeys need their mom and this household has to be vacuumed every.single.day ( I honestly believe that dust and bread crumbs and little scraps of paper are born from the floor in a spontaneous way at an outstanding rate ...), and dishes need to be done daily too (I can't turn my back on a messy kitchen...), and laundry must be taken care of... You know the freaking drill. So, I am only allowing myself to test a couple of patterns per month now. I am testing as a resident tester for just a couple of designers whom I love and trust, and also testing for a few friend designers (because I love them and their patterns). Then occasionally (if and when I find a free slot on my sewing schedule) I test for other designers when I truly love the new pattern or - because I am such a sewing geek - when I see the pattern will be a challenge and I will learn something new. :) The last sadly doesn't happen much because it seems that most designers are targeting sewists/sewers/seamstresses (pick your favorite) on a beginner level. So, back to this dress. :)

I had already made the Franklyn dress, the debut pattern from Brooklyn Pattern Co. (you can see it here, I made it in a beautiful floral viscose) and I loved it! The design, the instructions, the techniques... Erin was a costumer and a pattern maker on Broadway for several years until she became a mom. Costumers are one of the ultimate sewing gurus... They really know what they are doing and they have all my respect!

Chambray (I want to use chambray to make every.single.thing these days...), floral poplin and white Bird's Eye cotton piqué (I love cotton piqué in all its forms...).

The pattern suggests using cotton, linen, broadcloth or any fabric with some body.

Details:When I first saw this dress it was love at first sight... I love patterns with uncommon details and this one is one of them. Look at those pleated sleeves!... And also the front central panel and those angled pockets... Gorgeous! And different from what I am used to see in the indie PDF pattern world. The pattern was designed for sizes 18m to 8y and is classified as a level 2 (out of 4) of difficulty. There are no closures on this dress. The wide squared neckline (with a neck facing) allows to just pull it through the head. There is a full sleeve pattern piece (meaning, it is not symmetric) that is attached using the set in method, which I personally prefer to the flat construction method. Both things are great and I really appreciate them in a pattern meant for woven fabrics. The instructions are detailed, with graphics (not photos) and clear. The only think I did differently was basting the pockets to the side panels instead of pinning as suggested, and I hemmed at 1''+1'' instead of 1/2''+1/2'' just because I prefer it a bit shorter on her. And finally, this pattern as loads of notches to help you keep all the pieces together at the right places. It is wonderful! I really wish that more pattern designers would use them since they are so helpful and important construction wise.

Here is the line up for this pattern tour. Today I am teaming up with one of my sewing soul mates and a fellow Portuguese sewing blogger, Andreia of In a Manner of Sewing. She made two lovely Bedford dresses - another dress pattern that Erin released almost at the same time as the Henry dress pattern - in the most perfect fabrics...